AfricaPress-Tanzania: AZAM FC have fired warning shots to their opponents in the quarterfinals of Azam Sports Federation Cup (ASFC) Simba SC that they will approach the game differently to emerge winners.
The two teams meet for the fourth time this season after facing twice in the Mainland Premier League in which Simba managed to win both clashes triumphing 1-0 and 3-2 respectively to snatch maximum six points from their city colleagues.
Simba also beat Azam 4-2 in the Community Shield to signal official opening of the 2019/2020 season.
Speaking yesterday, the club’s Information Officer Thabit Zakaria said their coach Aristica Cioaba has said that he will use different approach from the ones he used in the top flight league.
“He (Cioaba) has described the ASFC game against Simba as tough but has insisted that he will equip his side with a different approach to silence the Reds,” Zakaria said.
He added that Cioaba considers the 3-2 loss his side surrendered to Simba in the top flight league as a draw, saying the third goal by their opponents was not correct as the ball was illegally retrieved outside the pitch.
He then disclosed that tomorrow, Azam will play a friendly match against Transit Camp at Azam Complex in the evening of which, he said the coach will use the match to gauge the fitness levels of his players.
“As you know, the players stayed for a long time without playing football together that is why he wants to use the friendly match to see the impact of the training sessions the squad has had,” he said.
None of Azam’s seven foreign based players who are in their respective countries have since returned back to rejoin the squad.
The team has three players in Zimbabwe (Donald Ngoma, Never Tigere and Bruce Kangwa), two players in Ghana (Razak Abalora and Dan Amoa) and one player in Uganda Nicholas Wadada.
Azam will play against Mbao FC on June 14th this year, to restart their remaining league matches of the season looking forward to cement their championship race as they sit second on the ladder with 54 points from 28 matches.
